To say that Kyrie Irving had an acrimonious split with the Celtics would be something of an understatement. Their season ended in disappointment last spring as they were ousted in the second round, just a year after they came within one win of the NBA Finals without Irving in the lineup.
Fair or not, Irving has absorbed much of the blame for the Celtics’ lack of chemistry and under-performance last season, amid all sorts of rumors of locker room discord between him and some of the fledgling stars on the roster. As a result, Irving was one of the first shoes to fall in free agency as he opted to sign with the Nets and join up with Kevin Durant.
He’s off to a rocky start in Brooklyn as his new team has sputtered out of the gate, compounded by an injury to Irving that has cost him the last six games. Irving will miss more games this week, including his return to Boston on Wednesday night. And even though he wasn’t with his team as they took on the Celtics at TD Garden, the home crowd made their feelings towards him crystal clear.
The Boston faithful letting Kyrie Irving know how they feel with “Kyrie sucks” chants 😲
(via @NBCSCeltics)pic.twitter.com/mx5hnqe2XW
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) November 28, 2019
Loud “Where is Kyrie?” chants have broken out again at the game. pic.twitter.com/5EWAdnm6iz
— Dante Turo (@DanteOnDeck) November 28, 2019
There’s been no specific time table for Irving’s return, but he’ll have at least one more chance to face his former team in Boston later this season where fans will surely let him know how they feel then as well.
